Riu Karamboa

Returned last week from a 7 day stay and still suffering holiday blues! OK so the flight is long with no entertainment so we went prepared with our ipads loaded, decent memory foam travel pillows and it flew by (pardon the pun). Transfer time is ridiculously short but be prepared to wait a while for check in if it's busy. We queued for about 25 minutes. During check in, book yourselves into the 3 restaurants, well worthwhile. Rooms are clean and spacious, cleaned every day and fresh towels. Only criticism here was that neither the balcony nor the shower had any lighting. There was a floor standing lamp in the room which you could stand outside the shower to see what you were doing! Staff are friendly but not overbearing. There seemed to be plenty of activities going on if you wanted but we spent the majority of our time on the beach, which for us was the main attraction. That beach!!! Miles and miles of beautiful sand to walk along and the ocean was just mesmerising. The biggest disappointment for us was that the red flag was flying every day bar 1 morning of our week there, especially as the water was so warm and inviting. The food was pretty standard all inclusive, plenty to choose from and slightly better in the 3 speciality restaurants. All restaurants are buffet style, no table service except for main course in the Cape Verdian one. The pool is huge and fairly quiet away from the swim up bar. We tend to keep to ourselves on holiday and didn't really partake in the entertainment so can't comment, the lobby and bar areas are relaxing to spend time in the evening having a few drinks. Cocktails could have been better as they use pre mixed drinks but staff will happily add extra rum into your pina colada on request! If you want proper coffee go to the bar nearesr reception (can't remember the name) where you can get a decent espresso/latte. There is nothing near the hotel. No shops or anything, there are some small shops inside the hotel but they are expensive. If you're looking for long walks on the beach, beautiful sunsets and rest and relaxation I would highly recommend as a value for money winter sun getaway. The TUI reps were great too, we didn't go to the welcome meeting or go on any excursions but we had an issue regarding the flights home and they were fantastic, particularly at the airport in Boa Vista and went out of their way to help.

Stayed from 22nd Oct for 2 weeks, we had 3 rooms which the hotel had managed to get together in the first block (1159,1160,1161). The rooms are dated but comfortable and a good size and what do you do in the room?? Sleep and shower is my answer The hotel is immaculate and I can`t stress that enough, never once did we see litter or mess piled up or things left lying around, the cleaners deserve a massive mention for this The pool area is also a bit tired but we didn`t let that bother us for the few times we ventured of the beautiful beach to grab a drink at the swim up bar, The BEACH. Wow what a stunning beach this is, we have been to a few different Caribbean islands including Aruba last year and this one takes a lot of beating believe me, miles of untouched golden sand to wander down and pop into the secluded beach bars along the way, the only disappointment for me was the sea was not the best for snorkelling but the waves were fun. (Not that my Aunty agreed after being knocked over and suffered cuts to her shoulder and face.) The food was great and plentiful and always replenished, we visited the speciality restaurants too with the Asian being the group favourite The drinks were fine and the self-serve beer tap was a great addition, the only down side to the drinks was the frozen cocktails were just blended with a few ice cubes leaving them quite watery but the spirits seemed fine to our group The staff were truly amazing and the shows are the best we have ever seen on a holiday, the Halloween one in particular was stunning, every single staff member walks around with a huge smile and nothing is too much trouble for them Done a couple of excursions, a half day catamaran trip through Tui which was very disappointing as it lasted just over 2 hours, did complain but was basically ignored on the last day so I would look elsewhere for this one. We did however have the best time on the 4 hour quad bike tour with Giggling Geckos and Richard the owner, What a lovely man and a very knowledgeable one at that, took us up towards the ship wreck then into the desert. Fabulous day finished off with food and drinks at Bahia the Beach bar (not included in price of quads) We also visited the nearby Beach Bar Perola de Chaves on numerous occasions, we had a few walks there during the day then went back for 2 of their special evenings, firstly the Sundowner evening (20 Euro pp) which was 2 cocktails each and a plate of very nice finger food followed by a fire and some dancing, then the Cape Verdean bbq (39 Euro pp) on the Friday evening which again was an amazing experience and one we all thoroughly enjoyed, both these evenings included hotel pick up and drop off Overall this was a fabulous holiday in a beautiful part of the world, one that needs to be visited very soon before the big boys of the hotel world move in (Hilton, Melia and Hard Rock all have land purchased) so if you want a chilled out holiday then don`t hesitate to visit this hotel and ignore the negative reviews of some people Would return in a heartbeat. Thanks Cape Verde and Riu Karemboa for a wonderful holiday

We visited here for the first time recently. It's advertised as a 5*+ and in our opinion it isn't. The weather was beautiful and the staff wonderful but the whole place needs an upgrade,it's very tired looking and the pool is an accident waiting to happen. Far,far too many tiles missing from the pool along with lumps of concrete and other bits sticking up in the pool. I was very disappointed with the restaurants you book in advance that they were still buffet style because other places we've stayed all inclusive you are served at your table which is nice after a week or so eating buffet style. There are NO lifts at the hotel and as my husband has had a knee replacement and waiting to have the other done we certainly wouldn't have booked it if we had known. I've rated it a generous 4*